Irving scores 38 but Cavs fall to Rockets

J.R. Smith No.5 of the Cleveland Cavaliers defends against James Harden no.13 of the Houston Rockets during the second half of their game at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio. AFP PHOTO

CLEVELAND: Australian star guard Kyrie Irving scored 38 points but did so in a losing cause on Wednesday (Thursday in Manila) as the Houston Rockets pulled away late to defeat the Cleveland Cavaliers 105-93.

Houston’s James Harden, the NBA scoring leader, went only 6-of-18 from the field but led the Rockets with 21 points as the visitors outscored the Cavaliers 32-19 in the fourth quarter in taking their third victory in five games.

The Cavaliers remain without injured star LeBron James, the NBA’s number two scorer who has a sore back and knee.

Irving’s season-high point total included only four points in the final period after torching Houston for 34 over the opening three quarters. His first field goal in the fourth quarter did not come until that was only about a minute remaining in the game.

Houston’s Corey Brewer scored eight of his 12 points in the fourth quarter and Trevor Ariza netted 13 points for the Rockets.

J.R. Smith played more than 17 minutes off the bench but went scoreless in his Cavaliers debut, missing all five of his shots. He was part of a three-team, six-player deal earlier in the week.

Kevin Love added 17 points and 16 rebounds for the Cavaliers while Tristan Thompson scored 11 for Cleveland, which lost for the sixth time in seven games. They are 19-17 overall but only 1-5 since James was sidelined.

The Cavaliers open their road trip Friday at Golden State, which has the NBA’s best record at 27-5.